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After being released by WWE in April 2021, Samoa Joe made his return to NXT last June. On August 22, at NXT TakeOver 36, Joe defeated Karrion Kross to win the NXT Championship for the third time in his career. On 12 September, however, he had to vacate the title due to a serious injury.
The 42-year-old Californian is known above all for his long militancy in the TNA, the federation in which he served from 2005 to 2015. In addition to being undefeated for nearly a year and a half, Samoa has once held the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, the TNA Television Championship, and the TNA X Division Championship five times.
During his time in WWE, he has won the US title twice and NXT three times. During the latest edition of the 'Wooooo Nation Uncensored' podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair complimented Joe on his work at the Stamford company.
Ric Flair praises Samoa Joe
“I've always been a big fan of Samoa Joe” - admitted the Nature Boy. “I think he is very good on the microphone and in the ring, so much so that people have never let him lack their support.
Also, when he faced Brock Lesnar, he proved to be a credible opponent for the Beast. He is very talented and I think his abilities are not emphasized enough. It is also true that injuries have limited him a lot during his career” - added 16 times world champion, Ric Flair.
The latter also focused on the future of The Undertaker, who retired last year at the Survivor Series. “Taker is no longer very young, he doesn't need the money and has accomplished every conceivable feat. I think he now just wants to spend more time with Michelle and her family.
It won't be easy for WWE to replace a myth like The Undertaker, as the Gravedigger had now become the symbol of WrestleMania. The same thing happened in the time of Stone Cold Steve Austin." During the podcast, Joe spoke about the different working environments in TNA and WWE.
He detailed that the TNA locker room was easy to work in while WWE was a more organized place and much larger in scale. "You know, TNA, obviously the locker room is awesome. Backstage at times could be chaotic. It was very easy going in a good way.
Especially in TNA, a lot of people wanted to work together to help each other and help get each other over," said Samoa Joe.